About

Hi I’m Janet Penner, the owner of Raining Cats & Dogs.

We opened this store on March 21, 2011. Here we have everything under one roof from pet food & treats to dog and cat beds to breed-specific gifts. And, of course, dog grooming. Owning and running a family pet-centered business has been a dream of mine that I’ve had as a little girl growing up in Chilliwack.

Also the whole family was born and raised here in Chilliwack. Me, my husband, our daughter, grand-daughter, my son and my daughter in-law (who are both graduates of the University of the Fraser valley), we were all born in this town so… it’s home. I don’t know of any other pet store owners who we’re born in this town – and living in this town as well.

When I was a youngster I went through the Yarrow horse 4H club. My daughter Courtney went through the Chilliwack 4H Dog Club. And I’d like to say that, since then, we’ve had experience in everything between a hamster and a horse. Been there done that.

We operate two separate businesses in the one location. The dog grooming is called “Lil Snippers Dog Grooming”. My daughter Courtney, the owner of Lil Snippers, was voted the number one dog groomer in Chilliwack for the last two years and we’ve only been opened two years. So we’re very proud of her and the job she’s doing.

One thing that we’re quite dedicated to is about educating the public about what you’re feeding your dogs. How to keep your pets healthy from the inside out. Honestly, a lot of people don’t read the labels as to what’s in the dog food that they’re feeding their dogs. I see it as my goal to educate them so that their dogs live a long and a happy life. If you’re not healthy you don’t have a lot. With sick pets all you’ll have is a lot of vet bills.

I’m a groomer as well. I had worked as a groomer in Alberta for two years but the family couldn’t wait any longer to get back “home” to Chilliwack so we’re happy to be here. We also breed Boston Terriers and my daughter shows them as well. Basically, everything in the store is tested and taste-tested with my own dogs so, if it’s not good enough for my dogs, then it’s probably not good enough for everyone else’s dogs.

In our store I really like to support Canadian suppliers when stocking the store. It’s even better within BC, and even better yet within Chilliwack. So I try to support local as much as I can. For example, the very good dog food products from First Mate are made right here in Chilliwack. Plus we have some dog treats from Maple Ridge and Mission. Then there’s “Pets Go Raw” which is made in Cranbrook BC. They deliver frozen raw dog food to us every second week.

But mostly I get a lot of joy when I see to see results of good pet care. Like when someone comes in with a dog that’s had skin issues for example, and I can go above and beyond to help them find a solution for them. I remember I had a customer who was contemplating putting their dog down because it had open sores all over it. It was in rough shape. We got it on a really good food and simply by the process of elimination determined that he was highly allergic to chicken. So we cut that completely out of his diet. The dog recovered and had a beautiful coat once again and everyone’s happy. I love success stories like that.

The other aspects of this store that is different is the breed-specific giftware like plaques, mugs, towels playing cards and games with pictures of your dog breed on them. You don’t find these things except at dog shows mostly.

I invite everyone who has any questions about their pet to drop in and see us. I’m always happy to help whoever I can.

Hi my name is Courtney Penner, the owner and groomer of Lil Snippers Pet Grooming.

I grew up loving dogs, and well, every other animal too. My mom owned Classy Clipper dog grooming and I would always help her at the shop when I was younger. Even before the shop I had a pug and I would brush her all day, although my mom wasn’t too happy to come in and see pug hair all over her carpets and furniture from my brushing.

My mom taught me a lot about grooming and I would practice on her miniature poodle when I was only ten. When I was 13 I started working with a poodle handler. We traveled all over and I would help groom and take care of his poodles. I learned a lot more scissoring techniques and got much more practice. Eventually I started working for professional handler Larry Clark in 2006 when I was 14. We traveled a lot and I learned to groom many more different breeds for the show ring. He has been a great friend of mine and we have had 5 great years and many more still to come. I have prepared some of the top show dogs for the ring, trained many dogs and worked and shown so many different breeds.

After so many years of traveling and grooming dogs I decided it would be nice to also groom during the weekdays in my own shop. I really enjoy working with new dogs all the time so this was perfect for me. I still do the dog shows although with my daughter it is nice to be able to be in town and home with her. She is following in the footsteps of her mom and grandmother as she has a strong love for all animals just as we did and she is only two.

I am excited to get to work with the dogs I do and make everyone’s pet look beautiful. Our goal here at Lil Snippers is to create a spa like experience for dogs because, like humans, they need to be pampered too!

We have a lot of high quality products that we use on our clients, from the best shampoos to the best pad treatments, we even have doggie facial scrub! We dremel all nails and try to create a very stress free environment for our dogs. We work with what the customer wants but also consider the dogs best interest as we do not like to cause any harm or pain to our critter friends. Dog grooming it’s more than just a job – it’s a passion.